What If?
by BlackMoon13
Summary: Looking for a new start in life , Artemis moves to FlowerBud , to bad no one told her about the jerk next door. Male Jamie F.Farmer Plz.review


AN: I thank you for taking the time to read my story. I realize my spelling is atrocious at best, and without a beta you will just have to do your best to ignore it. Sorry. As stated before, this fic.is rated M, as I have no idea where this story might end up and I wanted the freedom to go wherever I wanted with it. I will try to put warnings before chaps. with content that might need it, but I ask that you remember this is rated M and if you have a problem with this, or content that might arise because of it, for you to leave. I have no wish of getting in trouble when you have been warned.

-The Harvest Moon verse is not mine. I just manipulate the people and places to my biding. Plz. Review it makes me type faster and gives me good feelings.

It was a warm spring day, one of the first of the New Year. The birds were chirping, the sun was shining, the clouds floated by listlessly, and one girl lay flat down on the ground after tripping on a rock.

"Fuck"

Artemis was not having a great day. Grumbling darkly, she pulled herself to her feet. Brushing off her clothes, she bent to pick up her knapsack that had landed in a ditch alongside the path. After quickly checking it over, she continued with her trek towards the village in the distance with an annoyed sigh.

First she had been late for her bus, then, after waiting for an hour in the cold 'damn spring' for the next one, she had been forced to sneak on to said bus by standing behind an older couple and pretending they were related.

She rolled her eyes and looked to the sky.

It wasn't like she loved breaking the law or anything. She was not just some daredevil that got her kicks out of that crap. No, it was a lot simpler than that.

Artemis could not afford to do anything else.

Every night she thanked her lucky stars. She had been damn lucky, she understood that; not many kids got the second chance she had been given. Some of her first memories had been about the street life in the city. These "memories" were more like nightmares.

She shuddered and returned her gaze to the road.

Artemis was Twenty years old, and had only lived without a house for about a week when she was around seven, and she still had nightmares. She didn't like thinking about before that time. The memories were fuzzy, mismatched, and she really did not see the point of trying to remember something she was certain she wouldn't want to. 'Its not like anyone came looking for me anyway.'

She chuckled dryly nodding her head.

The woman who changed her life she had meet by pure accident. She remembered staying in the back of a garage trying to keep warm. It had been going dark, and the air had begun to freeze her young body. Being deathly afraid, as any human would be; she had ducked into the open garage under the assumption she would go undetected until morning.

That fantastic idea obviously hadn't worked.

She tossed her head back laughing.

A tall older woman had come back through a side door towards the opposite side of the building. She had seemed busy with something for she didn't take notice of the child until she had looked up.

The lady had screamed bloody murder. Artemis had thought she would have permanent hearing loss.

After explanations all around, the older one had been gracious enough to take her into her home. She learned the women's name was Mrs. Hudson. She was an old widow woman who worked at a travel agency and was more than happy to open up the home to her younger self. She was neither rich, nor prosperous, but to Artemis, she was the only family she had ever known.

But happiness never lasts forever, and about a moth ago Mrs. Hudson had finally left her to join Mr. Hudson. 'That old coot finally gets to rest. She was so old I was beginning to think she would live forever.'

She gave a small smile and swiped her hand over her face to brush off the wetness.

In her last will she had left Artemis everything she had owned. As nice as that might sound, it was by no stretch of the imagination a large sum of money. She had kept precious few of her previous belongings and had sold off the rest in an effort to gain money for her to take a trip to start over with her life. Mrs. Hudson and herself had on many occasions (for she had been a travel agent) spoken of places they might one day like to travel to. Flower Bud village had been a frequent topic. It apparently was a small town out in the middle of nowhere that was obsessed with tradition. Artemis had never found the idea all that appealing, but to Mrs. Hudson (who had visited once) it had been paradise on earth.

After she had passed on and Artemis had sold her few belongings, and had been living in a rundown section of town for a about a month, trying to decide where she should go. She was running out of money and was beginning to get desperate. Walking down the sidewalk job-hunting, she had happened to look at an ad posted on a window. It was an offer to work on a ranch in Flower Bud Village. Artemis hadn't cared about the work, hadn't cared about having to move, and hadn't cared that the most real life animals she had ever witnessed were the occasional yapping small dogs and pidgins. This job was something her "grandmother" would have loved to see her do, and that was enough for her.

She grunted as she almost tripped on another rock.

And of course, that was how she had ended up on this god-forsaken path carrying all her worldly possessions in a bloody bag. No, she sighed as she shifted the heavy bag to her other shoulder; she was not having a good morning.

Looking up she realized how close the gates to the village actually were becoming. With a sigh of relief she pressed on.

Laying the pack on the ground she sat down on top of it and looked around. It really was a beautiful place and with the setting sun it was almost magical. The wind picked up and ruffled her long brown hair causing her red tinted eyes to momentarily lose sight. With a huff she tried to begin the process of putting it back up when someone came running up the stone cobbled path.

He was, by far, the strangest man she had ever had the misfortune of laying eyes on. Short, with a tall hat, and a flamboyantly red suit, the tiny man approached with a smile.

"Hello, hello, and welcome! My name is Theodore and I am the Mayor of this fair village! Come, you must be here about the exciting ranch plan."

'Crazy much...'

"Ummm...well...yes." Artemis awkwardly stated as the short man clasped her hand.

"Ha! Ha! Ha! More welcome than! Welcome to Flower Bud!" Theodore laughed with twinkling eyes.

'Why do I get the feeling those eyes are going to drive me insane' She thought with a small smile.

PLZ. REVIEW

Obediently yours

BlackMoon13


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